Ogbono is botanically known as Irvingia gabonensis. Due to its wide socio-economic acceptance, it is called different names by different people across the world: African mango/ sweet bush mango/ or bread tree (English); bobo/ manguier/ or sauvage (French); ugiri or ogbono (Igbo); biri, goron/ or goronor (Hausa); oro, apon/ or aapon (Yoruba); ogwi (Benin); apioro (Delta); mbukpabuyo (Ibibio and Efik). When the seed is pulverized, it could be used to make the delicious ogbono soup in combination with palm oil, crayfish, vegetable and spices preferably maggi. Just like Egusi soup, Ogbono or draw soup served hot and fresh with Pounded Yam, Gari/ Eba, Amala or Fufu is a favourite cuisine for Nigerians and other African brothers and sisters in diaspora. Its unique, drawing slimy nature makes swallowing of solid food easy.
Ogbono seed is highly rich in protein, dietary fibre, minerals and vitamins which help in body building. The high dietary fibre found in the seed aids digestion, prevents constipation, aids detoxification pathway and improves bowel function. It further helps in weight reduction by increasing the hormone that suppresses hunger. From the findings of several research studies, the ogbono seed contains about 18 amino acids and a good number of nutrients, vitamins and minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, phosphorus and iron. Similarly, it controls diabetes and lowers cholesterol level; hence it is used in the pharmaceutical industry to formulate pertinent antidotes. Ogbono contains sticky wax (mucilage) that is useful for making medicinal tablets. The wax acts as a binding agent for tablets production. Advanced studies reveal that tablets manufactured with bush mango have increased brittleness and reduced tensile strength, when compared to gelatin tablets. Furthermore, ogbono or bush mango seeds could be processed into edible oil for cooking or for making margarine jelly, soap and cosmetics while the derivative cake could be modified to become cattle feed.
Ogbono seed could also be compressed into jam, juice and wine or into a butter/ chocolate-like mould and preserved for long-duration multipurpose uses. Besides, the pulp is used to prepare black dye for cloth coloration. Both the roots and barks also contain tannin, which is suitable for dyeing. The bark could be used for treating scabby skin.
At harvest, the fruits are picked from the ground or plucked from the tree. The fruits are allowed to decompose for few days. Alternatively the pulp could be peeled, leaving the nuts. Then, the nuts are cracked open with the use of a hammer. Thereafter, the ogbono seeds are extracted from the nuts and later dried in the sun for a few days. Sun drying the ogbono seeds helps to preserve the seeds for a long time. Dried ogbono seeds could be stored in a container and used for more than one year.
There are two types: the rainy season (ugiri) type and the dry season type. The dry season type has more drawing power and is in greater demand. The immense nutritional, medicinal and industrial values of the product account for its versatile demand. As should be expected, the price of the product is high during the dry season specifically from November to April, when the product is scarce. Then from May to October, the price is relatively low because this is the period of harvest when the product is abundant in the market.
The best place to source ogbono seeds from is the northern part of Cross River state, particularly the Ikom, Etung, and Boki local government areas. To maximize profits it is advisable to source the produce directly from the farmers. After purchase from the local market, it is instructive to store the seeds and then resell them when the product is scarce in the market.
When the produce is about to be used for cooking or industrial/ export purposes, it is usually crushed with small or industrial machine; the scale of operation would determine the size of machine to be used. In terms of packaging, ground ogbono seeds meant for export are best packaged in well-labelled thick transparent low-medium density polyethylene bags weighing 2kg, 5kg, 10kg, 20kg or 25kg, carefully adapted and branded to suit the varying needs of consumers.
The local price of unground ogbono seed is N2, 500/kg; that is: N5,000 for 2kg; N12, 500 for 5kg, N25,000 for 10kg, N50, 000 for 20kg, N62, 500 for 25kg, etc. The price may be slightly higher if grinding cost is added. However, the grinding cost differential may be inconsequential if the product is bought in bulk, which would naturally guarantee compensating discount.
In the international market, ground and packaged ogbono seed is sold for as much as $60/kg; that is: $120 per the 2kg polythene bag; $300 per the 5kg bag; $600 per the 10kg bag; and $1, 500 per the 25kg bag.
Now if an adventurous exporter sets aside about N1.5m in capital, he can, using the advantage of a better-negotiated bulk price (grinding cost inclusive), to procure 600kg of the stuff from the local market. If he goes further to measure out the product in varying units of weight (2kg 5kg, 10kg and 25kg) to suit the diverse needs of overseas-based consumers, he would end up raking in a total turnover amounting to $36, 000 (equivalent of N12.96m, based on the current exchange rate of $1=N360). All the administrative, shipping, handling, logistics, preoperational (registration/ feasibility research/ NAFDAC and produce service inspection, export procedures and documentation), operating, contingency costs, plus margin of risks, cannot be more than N5m. Take away the N5m cost from the N12.96m, and you will see the kind of goldmine that those who are already in the business are digging.
For those who are yet to be convinced, all the foregoing analysis clearly portend that export business is really a cool business! One clandestine advantage of the devaluation of the naira is the window of export opportunity that it has opened for Nigerians. You buy the local product from the local market at relatively cheap prices; you sell in the international market at fabulously high prices. Above all, one sure way of guaranteeing the steady availability of the product is to engage in planting (downstream production) and storage and processing (upstream activity).
Very interesting and lucrative business